Download Danse Macabre

Listening Analysis
Danse Macab re
(the dance of death)
Written by French composer Camille Saint-Saëns in 1875
The composition is based upon a poem by Henri Cazalis, on an old French
superstition (translated from French):
Zig, zig, zig, Death in a cadence,
Striking with his heel a tomb,
Death at midnight plays a dance-tune,
Zig, zig, zig, on his violin.
The winter wind blows and the night is dark;
Moans are heard in the linden trees.
Through the gloom, white skeletons pass,
Running and leaping in their shrouds.
Zig, zig, zig, each one is frisking,
The bones of the dancers are heard to crack—
But hist! of a sudden they quit the round,
They push forward, they fly; the cock has crowed.
The Dance of Death by Michael Wolgemut (1493)
Explanation of the poem: According to the ancient superstition, "Death" appears at midnight every year on Halloween. Death has the power to call forth the dead from their graves to dance for him while he plays his fiddle
(represented by a solo violin with its E-string tuned to an E-flat). His skeletons dance for him until the break of
dawn, when they must return to their graves until the next year.
Instrumentation:
Strings - solo violin in scordatura tuning (alternate tuning), section violins, viola, cello, bass, harp
Woodwinds (piccolo, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon)
Brass (French horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba)
Percussion (timpani, xylophone, bass drum, cymbals, triangle)
Other information: Danse Macabre is considered a symphonic poem (or tone poem), which is a piece of orchestral music that represents a particular story line, or plot, rather than just conveying emotions or a general idea. Saint
-Saëns was the first French composer to explore this genre. Saint-Saëns was not the first composer to use the image
of death as a fiddler but this piece is considered the most effective use of this imagery. The waltz theme may be
recognized as a variation of the Dies irae, the ancient liturgical chant for the dead. Saint Saens was inspired to write
tone poems by his contemporary, Hungarian composer Franz Liszt (1811-1886), who used the Dies irae as the basis for his Totentanz for piano and orchestra. When it was first performed, Danse Macabre was not received well.
Audiences were a little disturbed by the innovative sounds Saint-Saëns created.
Listening Map:
1. The piece opens with a harp playing a single note representing the chiming of midnight, and an introduction of
soft chords and pizzicato from the string section.
2. This leads to the eerie E flat and A chords (also known as a tritone or the "Devil's chord") played by a solo violin, representing death on his fiddle…
3. After which the main waltz theme is heard on a solo flute then violins…
4. And is followed by a descending scale on the solo violin.
5. The flute and solo violin begin to trade parts of the main theme.
6. The main waltz theme and the scale are then heard throughout the various sections of the orchestra. The xylophone represents the rattling bones of the dancing skeletons as they dance.
7. The solo violin alternates with the orchestra.
8. A musical canon (5 entrances) in the orchestra on a descending passage.
9. A lamenting solo in the violin (what could this be hinting at?)
10. The piece becomes more energetic and reaches a climax; the full orchestra playing with strong dynamics.
11. Solo oboe represents the rooster crowing at daybreak
12. Another violin solo, even more lamenting, which is joined for one final statement by the orchestra.
13. The final section, pianissimo (very soft), represents the dawn breaking and the skeletons returning to their
graves. The last 2 notes in the strings are pizzicato.